THE  AMERICAM  BAPTIST  HOME 

L  MISSION  SOCIETY-^"  NEW  YORK 


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PORTO  RICO 

A  Descriptive  Sketch  of  Baptist 
Missions  in  the  Island  ::  ::  :: 

By  Henry  L,  Morehouse,  D.D. 

CORRESPONDING  SECRETARY  OF  THE  AMERICAN 
BAPTIST  HOME  MISSION  SOCIETY 


“  Last  week  I  organized  the  new  church  at  Guzman  Arriba  with  thirty 
members,  all  of  whom  were  baptized  the  15th.  A  great  work  is  going  on  up 
there.  .  .  .  Since  sending  in  the  annual  report  I  have  baptized  fifty-four 

new  brethren.” — From  Rev.  H.  P.  McCormick,  San  Juan,  Porto  Rico,  April  23rd. 


HARBOR  VIEW  IN  SAN  JUAN,  PORTO  RICO— THE  EXECUTIVE  MANSION  OF  THE  WHITE  CITY 


FOREWORD 


i,--*:  krrc:  ■ 


THE  OPEN  DOOR 


These  things  saith  he  that  is  holy,  he  that 
openeth  and  no  man  shutteth;  Behold,  I 
have  set  before  thee  an  open  door,  and  no 
man  can  shut  it. — Rev.  3:7,  8.  :  : 


B 


EHOLD  the  Open  Door — open  conspicuously  and  providentially — in 
the  island  of  Porto  Rico.  To  show  how  open  is  the  door,  how  great 
and  inviting  the  opportunity,  how  imperative  the  Divine  summons, 
how  rich  and  certain  the  blessed  results  of  entrance — that  is  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  this  publication. 

This  purpose  explains  the  indefatigable  and  incessant  movement  of  Secre¬ 
tary  Morehouse  during  his  two  months’  trip  of  thorough  investigation  of  these 
islands.  This  explains  the  presentation  of  the  conditions  in  sufficient  detail  to 
set  the  opportunities  fairly  before  our  people.  This  explains  also  the  fullness 
of  illustration,  enabling  us  to  see  with  him,  through  his  faithful  camera;  to 
appreciate  contrasts  of  equipment  for  service  that  words  could  not  describe; 
and  to  feel  a  kind  of  personal  acquaintance  with  scenes  and  workers. 

Behold  the  Open  Door.  Divinely  set  before  us,  no  man  can  shut  it.  But 
the  Baptists  may  fail  to  enter  it.  That  is  the  one  possible  peril.  Not  fail  to 
enter  altogether,  for  we  have  already  entered  and  begun  a  possession  full  of 
blessing.  But  we  must  enter  and  occupy  fully,  till  gospel  privileges  are  within 
the  reach  of  every  inhabitant,  and  the  gospel  principles  established  everywhere. 

The  reading  of  Dr.  Morehouse’s  narrative  recalls  the  missionary  journeys 
of  Paul  and  Barnabas.  The  parallel  does  not  obtain  in  the  way  of  persecution 
and  frequent  hardship,  but  it  does  in  the  eagerness  on  the  part  of  many  to  hear 
the  simple  gospel  story,  the  establishing  and  strengthening  of  churches,  the 
going  from  place  to  place  preaching  and  confirming  faith,  and  the  pioneer 
methods  of  extending  the  kingdom  of  God  in  new  regions. 

The  story  leaves  no  question  at  all  that  this  is  the  golden  hour  for  the  Bap¬ 
tists  in  Porto  Rico.  Study  the  map  on  another  page  and  note  the  sweep 
through  the  island  of  the  section  we  have  made  our  own  by  aggressive  and 
statesmanlike  plan  and  pursuit  of  the  work.  We  follow  and  include  the  splen¬ 
did  military  road,  chief  artery  of  commerce.  But  to  hold  the  advantage  we 
must  build  houses  of  worship  worthy  of  us  and  of  the  Porto  Rican  Baptists. 
This  and  much  more  is  made  clear  in  what  follows. — From  the  Home  Mission 
Monthly. 


MAP  OF  PORTO  RICO;  SHOWING  OUR  FIELD  OF  IMISSIONARY  OPERATIONS 


4 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


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OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


5 


PORTO  RICO 


And  Our  Baptist  Work  in  the  Island 


RAPID  SURVEY  OF  OUR  FIELD  AND  WORK  AS  SEEN  BY 
THE  CORRESPONDING  SECRETARY  —  NARRATIVE  SKETCH 
OF  A  TWENTY-FIVE  DAYS’  TOUR  IN  THE  ISLAND  :  : 


Leaving  New  York  Sat¬ 
urday  afternoon,  Dec.  26, 
1903,  we  reached  the 
wharf  at  San  Juan,  Friday 
night  the  31st.  Ours  was  a 
slow  boat ;  another,  of  the  same 
line,  makes  the  trip  in  about 
four  days.  The  next  time  we 
go  we  propose  to  take  that  boat 
and  get  there  as  soon  as  possi¬ 
ble — the  quicker  the  better.  As 
we  left  New  York  old  Boreas 
was  blowing  a  fierce  and  biting 
blast  from  the  northwest.  At 
San  Juan,  after  passing  the  towering  Morro 
Castle  in  the  full  moonlight,  we  were  saluted 
by  balmy  breezes,  the  blowing  of  horns,  play¬ 
ing  of  bands,  fire  crackers,  roman  candles, 
rockets  and  steam  whistles  of  the  harbor 
craft — concomitants  of  the  incoming  New 
Year.  The  heavy  winter  clothing  worn  at 
the  beginning  of  the  trip  was  discarded  for 
summer  apparel  before  its  end. 

For  three  days  or  more  the  sea  was  very 
rough ;  the  pronounced  motion  of  the  boat 
giving  a  new  meaning  to  a  favorite  song  of 
the  Negroes : 

“Pm  a  rolling,  I’m  a  rolling. 

I’m  a  rolling  through  an  unfriendly  world.” 
It  was  aggravating  to  read  this  notice  in 
the  state  rooms  :  “Meals  :  Breakfast  to  or¬ 
der,  7  to  9;  regular  breakfast,  ii;  lunch  3 
P.M. ;  dinner,  6  P.M.” — for  most  of  this 
proved  to  be  a  superfluity  to  the  passengers 
generally.  Sunday  was  indeed  a  day  of  rest 
— most  of  the  people  being  in  their  berths. 
It  was  also  a  general  fast  day,  and  an  air  of 
solemnity  pervaded  the  ship.  The  Spanish 
word,  whose  sound  is  more  expressive  than 
its  English  equivalent  in  describing  the  trip, 
is  :  “desagradable.”  Our  conclusion  was  this  : 
A  sea-voyage  of  this  character  is  a  strain 
upon  good  nature,  good  manners  and  good 
morals,  and  upon  human  nature  in  general ; 


but  doubtless  has  its  disciplinary  value  to 
those  who  are  duly  exercised  thereby. 

These  experiences,  however,  were  soon  for¬ 
gotten  amid  the  novel  and  beautiful  scenes  of 
this  evergreen  isle;  and  the  early  New  Year’s 
greeting  by  Rev.  H.  P.  McCormick,  who 
came  to  the  boat  on  which  we  had  remained 
all  night,  brought  cheer  and  comfort.  To 
this  was  added  for  several  days  the  delightful 
hospitality  of  his  pleasant  home,  which  has 
become  quite  a  centre  of  attraction  for  many 
American  residents. 

FROM  START  TO  FINISH 

Here  at  San  Juan  began  our  busy  mission¬ 
ary  journey  of  fifty-si.x  days — from  Friday, 
Jan.  1st,  to  Friday,  Feb.  26th,  when  we  left 
behind  us  the  visible  wreck  of  the  Maine  and 
looming  Morro  Castle  at  Havana.  Twenty- 
five  days  were  devoted  to  Porto  Rico;  two- 
and-a-half  days  were  required  for  the  trip 
by  steamer  from  Ponce  to  Santiago ;  and 
twenty-eight  days  were  given  principally  to 
eastern  Cuba.  In  the  fifty-one  days  spent  on 
our  mission  fields  we  visited  forty  mission 
stations — all  there  were  of  importance  then 
in  the  islands ;  though  there  are  nearly  as 
many  more  minor  ones.  About  60  miles  were 
traversed  on  horseback,  much  of  the  way  over 
rugged  trails ;  about  500  by  wagon,  mostly 
over  good  roads,  but  for  two  days  over  ex¬ 
ceedingly  rough  ones ;  about  1,200  miles  by 
boat,  and  200  by  rail ;  so  that  in  this  as  in 
many  other  respects  we  had  the  spice  of  life 
that  comes  from  variety.  We  spoke  about 
forty  times  to  congregations  aggregating  over 
5,000  people;  participated  in  five  dedication 
services ;  negotiated  for  eight  sites  for 
church  edifices ;  held  two  missionary  con¬ 
ferences  of  our  workers  in  these  islands ;  and 
throughout  the  entire  trip,  thanks  to  a  kind 
Providence,  met  with  no  mishap,  nor  were 
laid  aside  a  single  day  because  of  illness  or 
exhaustion. 


6 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


General  Outline  of  the  Field 


From  San  Juan  in  the  northeast  to  Ponce 
in  the  southwest  diagonally  through  the 
island  on  and  adjacent  to  the  great  military 
road,  is  a  section  about  loo  miles  long  by 
25  wide  that  is  the  particular  field  of  the 
American  Baptist  Home  Mission  Society. 
The  two  chief  cities  are  open  to  all  denom¬ 
inations,  but  the  comity  agreement  between 
representatives  of  missionary  societies  in  the 
island  gives  cities  of  less  than  8,000  ex¬ 
clusively  to  the  denomination  first  occupying 
and  holding  services  there.  In  this  district, 
whose  boundaries  are  not  sharply  defined, 
there  are  eighteen  towns  and  cities  with  a 
population  each  from  about  1,000  to  6,000,  all 
of  which  except  two  we  have  occupied.  Here 
is  a  population  of  about  240,000,  or  nearly 
one-fourth  of  the  whole  island.  There  are 
21  principal  mission  stations  and  30  outsta- 
tions,  cared  for  by  three  American  mission¬ 
aries  and  eight  native  helpers,  besides  two 
American  women  appointed  by  the  Woman’s 
Home  Mission  Society  at  Boston,  and  one  by 
the  Society  at  Chicago.  The  three  Ameri¬ 
can  missionaries  at  the  chief  centres  are  Rev. 
H.  P.  McCormick,  San  Juan;  Rev.  E.  L. 
Humphrey,  Cayey;  Rev.  A.  B.  Rudd,  Ponce. 
Bro.  McCormick,  in  addition  to  the  care  of 
a  particular  church,  has  the  general  manage¬ 
ment  of  operations  in  the  northern  half,  and 
Bro.  Rudd,  likewise  of  the  southern  half  of 
this  field ;  Bro.  Humphrey,  however,  devot¬ 
ing  attention  to  a  limited  central  portion  be¬ 
sides  Cayey.  For  them  to  occupy  and  prop¬ 
erly  cultivate  these  numerous  mission  sta¬ 
tions,  to  discover  and  utilize  native  helpers, 
and  attend  to  the  multifarious  matters  inci¬ 


dent  to  the  prosecution  of  a  new  work  where 
long  and  tedious  journeys  are  frequently 
required,  has  been  a  tremendous  task.  Rec¬ 
ognizing  the  necessity  for  more  mission¬ 
aries,  the  Society  has  appointed  Rev.  L.  E. 
Troyer,  of  the  graduating  class  of  the  Roch¬ 
ester  Theological  Seminary,  as  an  associate 
for  Bro.  Rudd,  and  Mr.  H.  W.  Vodra 
of  the  same  class  as  an  associate  for  Bro. 
McCormick  in  his  field.  In  the  whole  dis¬ 
trict  there  are  15  churches,  with  873  mem¬ 
bers,  and  good  congregations  at  the  other 
points ;  also  Sunday  Schools  with  an  at¬ 
tendance  of  about  1,000.  There  are  two 
church  edifices,  at  Ponce  and  Corral  Viejo, 
and  a  third  being  erected  at  La  Playa;  other 
congregations  meeting,  either  in  buildings 
erected  for  residential  or  business  purposes, 
and,  generally,  rented  to  the  Society.  Con¬ 
sidering  the  small  force  and  the  moderate 
outlay  of  money,  the  results  of  five  years' 
tillage  are  exceedingly  gratifying.  It  was  my 
privilege  in  the  twenty-five  days  spent  in 
Porto  Rico,  to  visit  all  of  the  21  chief  stations, 
and  to  meet  and  address  congregations  ag¬ 
gregating  about  2,000  people.  In  this  I  had 
the  delightful  companionship,  for  the  north¬ 
ern  and  central  section,  of  Bro.  McCormick, 
and  for  the  southern  section,  of  Bro.  Rudd: 
also  of  Bro.  Humphrey  a  few  days  in  his 
field. 

The  purpose  of  the  following  sketches  is 
to  portray  the  conditions  of  the  various 
fields,  their  prospects  and  needs,  making  of 
them  three  groups,  viz.:  the  Northern,  the 
Central  and  the  Southern  districts.  First  we 
will  look  at  the  capital  city. 


The  Capital  of  the  Island  and  Its  Suburbs 


SAN  JUAN,  THE  WHITE  CITY 
THE  CAPITAL  A  STRATEGIC  POINT 

Beautiful  for  situation  is  this  city  in 
its  setting  of  ultra-marine  blue  on  the 
north,  and  across  the  bay  on  the  south  the 
varied  hues  of  green  mingling  in  the  dis¬ 
tance  with  the  bluish  haze  of  the  mountain 
range.  Its  site  is  a  promontory,  somewhat 
like  the  bowl  of  an  inverted  spoon,  with  a 
slender  connection  to  the  main  land.  The 
military  reservation  and  large  barracks  ad¬ 
jacent  to  Morro  Castle  on  the  west,  and  the 
military  grounds  in  proximity  to  the  fortress 
of  San  Cristobal  on  the  east,  hem  in  the  city, 
preventing  under  existing  conditions  much 
expansion.  Hence  property  is  valuable  for 
every  purpose.  The  overflow  is  making  its 
way  to  the  charming  suburb  of  San  Turce, 
eastward,  where  Americans  have  residences, 
and  further  on  southeasterly  eight  miles  to 
Rio  Piedras,  reached  by  electric  trolley  line. 
About  33,000  people  live  in  the  city,  the  better 
classes  mostly  in  the  second  stories  of  build¬ 
ings  which  are  devoted  below  chiefly  to  busi¬ 


ness  purposes.  The  city  is  comparatively 
clean,  its  narrow  streets  for  the  most  part 
well  paved  and  with  good  sidewalks.  Grim, 
massive,  multi-colored  sustaining  walls  of 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


7 


masonry,  rising  high  from  near  the  ocean 
line  to  the  summit,  encompass  the  western 
portion.  Prominent,  and  overlooking  the 
water,  is  tlie  Governor’s  mansion,  part  of 
which  with  its  partition-walls  seven  feet 
thick  was  built  in  1530;  and  on  the  south 
overlooking  the  spacious  harbor,  rises  the 
casa  blanca  (white  house)  of  Ponce  de  Leon, 
whose  statue  and  that  of  Columbus  adorn 
the  plazas  of  the  city.  The  Governor’s  re¬ 
ception,  which  we  attended  on  New  Year's 
night,  was  a  large  and  brilliant  gathering. 

OUR  BAPTIST  WORK 

This  greatest  commercial  and  governmental 
city  of  the  island  was  occupied  by  the  Home 
Mission  Society  as  its  first  station  early  in 
1899.  While  a  good  work  has  been  wrought 
here  and  a  fair  foothold  gained,  yet  under 
better  conditions  more  might  have  been  and 
may  be  accomplished.  Here  we  have  71 
members  and  a  small  Sunday  School.  Con¬ 
siderations  of  health  and  of  economy,  as  well 
as  the  desirability  of  occupying  Rio  Piedras, 
made  it  advisable  for  the  missionary’s  resi¬ 
dence  to  be  in  that  city ;  so  that  the  work  in 
San  Juan  is  done  somewhat  at  arm’s  length. 
Bro.  McCormick  usually  holds  service  here 
twice  a  week,  preaching  twice  a  month  on 
Sunday  nights ;  while  he  also  gives  as  much 
or  more  time  to  the  church  in  Rio  Piedras. 
Miss  Ida  Hayes,  an  experienced  and  capable 
missionary,  likewise  divides  her  time  between 
these  fields,  spending  one  day  at  least  in 
visiting  in  San  Juan.  It  is  simply  impossible 
for  Bro.  McCormick  to  do  all  that  ought  to 
be  done  here,  wdth  the  supervision  of  many 
other  fields,  and  now  also  editor  of  our 
monthly  Baptist  paper  for  Porto  Rico.  In 
this  formative  period  in  Porto  Rico  he  has 
wdsely  and  efficiently  devoted  attention  to  its 
educational  and  philanthropic  affairs.  A 
strong,  capable  man  with  a  native  assistant 
should  be  appointed  here  without  delay.  He 
could  also  preach  to  Americans  without  in¬ 
terfering  with  the  other  work.  Calvary  Bap¬ 
tist  Church  of  Washington,  D.C.,  presented 
the  San  Juan  church  with  a  fine  organ. 

SUITABLE  HOUSE  A  NECESSITY 

The  lack  of  a  suitable  house  of  worship 
has  been  a  great  hindrance  to  our  progress. 
Our  mission  is  housed  in  rented  quarters, 
formerly  small  double  parlors  now  in  one 
room  that  seats  about  100  persons,  with  a 
baptismal  tank  at  the  rear  of  the  platform  in 
the  small  room  adjacent.  Though  tastefully 
decorated  with  Scripture  mottoes  and  palm 
branches,  at  the  best  it  looked  small  and  mean 
and  utterly  unsuited  to  attract  people  or  to 
make  much  of  an  impression  on  such  a  city. 
A  proper  house  of  worship  is  an  imperative 
necessity.  To  find  a  suitable  and  available 
site  has  been  very  difficult,  for  there  are  no 
vacant  lots  and  land  with  buildings  thereon 
is  expensive.  It  is  hoped  that  negotiations 
for  a  location  which  we  at  last  selected  will 
scon  be  consummated.  For  the  purchase 
thereof  and  the  reconstruction  of  a  part  of 
the  excellent  building  probably  about  $20,000 


will  be  required.  But  when  secured,  it  will 
be  admirably  adapted  to  church  and  Sunday 
School  and  kindergarten  purposes  and  for 
the  residence  of  the  native  worker.  Never 
shall  we  get  large  numbers  and  the  kind  of 
people  we  ought  to  have  while  laboring  under 
present  disadvantages.  We  must  strike 


A  Characteristic  Road  in  Porto  Rico 


quickly  and  strongly  for  better  things,  or, 
what  would  be  a  disgrace,  abandon  the  field. 

AT  RIO  PIEDRAS 

At  Rio  Piedras,  where  our  missionaries  re¬ 
side,  and  where  we  own  a  rangy  house  which 
has  been  converted  into  a  fairly  good  room 
for  public  worship,  is  a  flourishing  church  of 
1 18  members,  and  an  attendance  of  84  at  the 
Sunday  School  wdien  I  was  there.  Congre¬ 
gations  are  good,  comprising  people  of  in¬ 
telligence  and  good  standing.  Mrs.  McCor¬ 
mick,  an  accomplished  musician  and  imbued 
with  the  missionary  spirit,  played  the  cabinet 
organ  given  by  the  Sunday  School  of  the 
Baptist  Church  of  Morristown,  N.  J.  Ours 
is  the  only  evangelical  church  in  the  place. 

This  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  strategic 
points  which  we  must  hold  and  develop ;  for 
here,  and  near  our  church,  at  the  north,  is 
the  spacious  and  beautiful  site  for  the  insular 
University,  one  building  costing  $27,000  hav¬ 
ing  been  recently  erected  and  others  utilized 
for  a  department  now  in  operation.  Here 
soon  should  be  erected  a  good  church  edifice, 
attractive  to  students  as  well  as  to  others, 
so  that  we  may  thus  lay  hold  so  far  as  w’e 
may  of  the  coming  intellectual  forces  of 
Porto  Rico.  No  other  denomination  has 
such  an  opportunity  as  this,  and  we  shall  be 
almost  criminally  remiss  if  we  fail  to  im¬ 
prove  it.  A  suitable  house,  properly  equipped, 
will  cost  from  $5,000  to  $6,000.  And  when 
it  is  built  our  present  structure  may  be  con¬ 
verted  into  a  dormitory  for  Baptist  students 
at  the  University,  and  some  theological  in¬ 
struction  be  given  also  to  those  preparing  for 


8 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


the  gospel  ministry.  For  very  soon  some¬ 
thing  must  be  done  in  this  direction. 

Here  too,  services  should  before  long  be 
held  for  Americans  who,  near  Rio  Piedras, 
are  going  into  the  cultivation  of  tropical 
fruits  and  other  enterprises. 

In  this  vicinity,  several  miles  away  up  in 
the  foothills  of  the  mountains,  are  outstations 
to  which  Bro.  McCormick  goes  on  horseback. 


Chief  of  these  is  Trujillo  Alto.  The  coming 
of  a  Christian  minister  to  these  people,  long 
and  utterly  unvisited  by  Romish  priests,  is 
a  new  thing  under  the  sun.  Eagerly  they 
listen  to  the  messenger  of  good  tidings,  and 
the  work  there  is  very  hopeful.  So  here  and 
there  the  light  is  shining  in  the  darkness  and 
the  dawn  of  a  brighter  day.  as  we  shall  more 
fully  perceive,  is  breaking  for  Porto  Rico. 


1.  Oar  Work  in  the  Northern  District 

MISSIONARY  TOUR  IN  NORTHERN  PORTO  RICO  — NEW 
EXPERIENCES— A  GREAT  WORK  AND  ITS  NEEDS  :  : 


The  Northern  District  extends  from  San 
Juan  easterly  about  30  miles,  and  from 
the  ocean  south  into  the  mountain  range  from 
10  to  15  miles.  In  towns  and  rural  com¬ 
munities  our  work  is  established. 

Easterly  from  San  Juan  (Hwan)  and  Rio 
Piedras  (Re-o  Pe-a-dras)  are  several  mis¬ 
sion  stations,  chief  of  which  are  Carolina, 
Rio  Grande,  Mediania  and  Ausubal.  To 
visit  these  Rev.  H.  P.  McCormick  and  my¬ 
self  took  the  train  ten  miles  to  Carolina, 
where  we  stayed  over  night,  and  proceeded 
by  team  the  next  morning  seven  miles  east  to 
Rio  Grande,  thence  northerly  to  the  ocean 
and  westerly  to  Mediania  and  near  Ausubal 
took  horses  over  the  hilly  trail,  then  back  to 
the  carriage,  southerly  to  Carolina  and  on  to 
Rio  Piedras,  having  travelled  over  30  miles, 
part  of  the  way  over  roads  so  rough  that 


we  walked  for  the  sake  of  the  team  and  our¬ 
selves  ;  at  one  river  crossing  in  a  row  boat, 
while  the  team  forded  the  stream,  with  the 
water  in  the  carriage;  and  also  crossing  an 
arm  of  the  sea  after  a  native  had  waded  it 
to  show  that  it  was  safe  to  do  so.  At  times 
the  road  ran  through  vast  fields  of  sugar 
cane,  then  through  long  stretches  of  cocoa- 
nut  groves — the  trees  generally,  under  the  in¬ 
fluence  of  the  trade  winds,  inclined  to  the 
southwest ;  to  the  north  of  us  the  Atlantic, 
and  to  the  south  not  many  miles  distant  the 
mountain  range,  which  here  attains  a  height 
of  3,800  feet.  After  crossing  the  arm  of  the 
sea  we  were  refreshed  by  the  contents  of  co- 
coanuts  obtained  by  a  native  in  scanty  cos¬ 
tume  climbing  a  tree  and  clipping  them  off 
with  his  knife  or  machete.  We  got  a  very 
good  snapshot  of  him  in  the  act,  as  the  illus- 


The  Town  of  Carolina 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


9 


tration  on  a  subsequent  page  shows.  He  was 
a  clever  climber. 

THE  FIRST  EVENING  SERVICE 

At  Carolina,  in  our  small  rented  room,  we 
held  our  first  service  at  night.  About  70 
were  present,  a  score  or  more  standing  at 
the  door  and  window  for  lack  of  accommoda¬ 
tions  within.  They  were  mostly  negroes,  the 
region  being  devoted  largely  to  the  sugar 
cane  industry.  Our  native  missionary,  Bro. 
Marchan,  a  student  in  the  Normal  School  at 
Rio  Piedras,  where,  by  the  way,  he  recently 
took  all  but  one  of  the  athletic  prizes, 
preaches  here  and  at  other  points  in  the  vi¬ 
cinity,  and  gives  promise  of  great  usefulness. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  Bro.  McCor¬ 
mick  very  impressively  united  a  couple  in 
matrimony.  There  was  no  fee  for  the  bene¬ 
fit  of  the  minister’s  wife.  Bro.  Rudd,  of 
Ponce,  stated  that  for  more  than  a  hundred 
couples  that  he  had  married  he  had  received 
$4  /5  in  cash  and  two  pineapples !  Many 
have  only  money  for  their  daily  needs,  and 
this  on  a  most  economical  basis.  Is  it  any 
wonder,  therefore,  that  when  the  priests  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church  charged  from 
ten  to  fifty  dollars  for  the  marriage  cere¬ 
mony,  the  poor  people  generally  assumed  do¬ 
mestic  relationships  without  its  sanction,  in 
the  most  primitive  and  informal  way?  And 
so  it  comes  to  pass  that  one  of  the  first  things 
to  be  done  in  many  cases  where  converts 
apply  for  church  membership  is  to  marry 
those  who  have  thus  lived  together  and 
reared  families. 

THE  E.\ STERN  MOST  FIELDS 

After  our  first  night  at  a  so-called  hotel — - 
where  by  mistake  in  the  dim  light  of  the  bed¬ 
room  one  of  our  number  emptied  his  wash 
bowl  into  a  waste  basket,  evidently  disturb¬ 
ing  the  occupant  of  the  room  below,  and 
where,  with  very  scanty  bedding  above  and 
below  our  bodies,  we  got  some  sleep — we 
left  for  Rio  Grande,  our  easternmost  mission 
field  in  this  part  of  the  island.  Though  it 
was  too  early  in  the  day,  upon  our  arrival 
there,  for  a  service,  we  visited  some  of  our 
people,  and  found  here  an  interesting  illus¬ 
tration  of  the  zeal  and  devotion  of  the  new 
converts,  in  the  person  of  a  comparatively 
well-to-do  Negro  woman,  who  has  fitted  up 
a  part  of  her  house  for  our  meetings  and 
has  done  likewise  at  another  mission  station. 
Her  face  fairly  glowed  with  satisfaction  and 
delight  in  rendering  this  service. 

Alediania,  reached  after  about  three  hours’ 
ride,  is  a  thickly  settled  hamlet  rather  than 
a  compact  village,  the  small  one-story  houses 
constructed  of  light  material  with  heavy 
thatched  roofs.  In  the  largest  of  three  rooms 
of  the  residence  of  Bro.  Ramon  Biron,  the 
preacher,  our  services  are  held.  Verily,  here 
is  an  illustration  of  the  Scripture — “the 
church  in  the  house”  of  one  of  the  believers. 
It  was  too  early  for  services  here,  besides 
they  had  not  received  word  of  our  coming. 
But  we  saw  and  heard  many  things  of  inter¬ 
est.  Entering  the  house,  posted  on  the  par¬ 


tition  was  the  notice  of  the  weekly  services 
and  underneath,  in  Spanish :  “Go  into  all 
the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature.”  That  was  the  warrant  for  the 
work  there  and  for  telling  the  good  news  to 
others.  Another  paper,  near  the  first,  con¬ 
tained  the  names  of  five  persons  who  had 
formally  expressed  their  wish  to  unite  with 
the  church.  Several  weeks,  indeed  several 
months,  might  pass  before  they  would  be 
baptized,  and  meantime  everybody  had  the 
opportunity  to  study  them  and  judge  whether 
they  were  worthy  of  membership.  Since  my 
return  a  letter  has  been  received  from  Bro. 
IMcCormick  stating  that  he  had  just  made  a 
very  arduous  trip  to  Mediania,  where  he  bap¬ 
tized  eleven  persons  in  the  ocean.  Another 
notice  excited  our  curiosity,  namely  this : 
“Let  your  women  keep  silence  in  the 
churches.”  The  novel  explanation  given  me 
for  this  was  that  there  was  too  much  of  a 
tendency  among  the  women  when  they  came 
together  to  indulge  in  social  gossip  that 
was  detrimental  to  reverence  and  piety.  Evi¬ 
dently  they  believe  in  having  things  done 
“decently  and  in  order”  in  the  house  of  God. 
Since  our  visit,  Bro.  McCormick  has  baptized 
eleven  persons  here. 

At  Medi.xnia  we  must  have  a  chapel, 

TASTEFUL  BUT  INEXPENSIVE,  TO  ACCOM M0D.4TE 
ABOUT  150  PEOPLE.  It  CAN  BE  BUILT  FOR  $700 

OR  $800.  Who  will  build  it? 

BIBLE  INQUIRY 

Passing  along  to  Loiza,  where  by  the  kind¬ 
ness  of  a  storekeeper  we  got  a  light  lunch 
while  the  team  rested,  we  saw  a  man  at  the 
door  of  his  little  store  in  the  front  room  of 
his  residence,  reading  a  book.  Halting,  we 
inquired  what  he  was  reading,  and  as  he 
came  out  to  the  carriage  he  showed  us  the 
New  Testament,  in  which  he  was  greatly  in¬ 
terested.  With  some  words  of  commenda¬ 
tion  and  exhortation,  we  passed  on,  rejoic¬ 
ing  in  the  spirit  of  inquiry  that  has  got  into 
the  hearts  of  the  people  to  whom  the  Bible 
has  been  an  unknown  book. 

ON  HORSEBACK  TO  AUSUBAL 

Last  and  best  of  all  was  the  visit  to  Ausu- 
bal.  This  could  not  be  reached  by  wagon ; 
so,  mounting  horses  that  were  sent  to  us,  we 
ascended  a  rough  hilly  trail,  then  descended 
on  the  opposite  side  to  an  extended  valley, 
dotted  here  and  there  with  thatched  cabins. 
As  we  came  in  sight  of  these  the  ringing 
sound  of  a  conch  shell  blown  by  a  lusty- 
lunged  native,  greeted  our  ears.  It  was  the 
summons  for  the  .people  to  gather.  From  all 
quarters  they  came  and  many  were  the  warm 
greetings  we  received.  .They  were  mostly  col¬ 
ored  people  of  various  shades  of  complexion, 
many  of  them  of  fine  appearance.  This  church 
takes  care  of  itself  without  any  aid  from  the 
Society,  but  doing  it  in  a  very  simple,  humble 
way.  They  worship  in  the  principal  room  of 
the  residence  of  one  of  their  members,  which 
is  fitted  up  with  rude  benches,  where  between 
60  and  70  persons  were  crowded  in  the  room 
and  about  the  door  during  our  services.  The 


lo 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


Our  Mission  House  Rio  Piedras 


Mission  House  at  Ausubal 


Normal  School  at  Rio  Piedras 

Mission  House  at  Mediania  Type  of  finer  village  residence 

These  Mission  Houses  are  also  residences  What  could  better  illustrate  the  need  of  appropriate  chapels? 


Ol^R  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


1 1 


unction  with  wliich  some  of  them  prayed 
and  the  spirit  in  which  they  sang  carried  con¬ 
viction  to  our  hearts  of  the  genuineness  and 
strength  of  their  Christian  experience. 

A  BAPTISMAL  INCIDENT 

This  was  attested  in  a  striking  manner  at 
the  baptism  by  Bro.  McCormick  of  a  man 
who  had  been  a  very  wicked  character. 
While  in  the  water  he  asked  the  privilege  of 
saying  a  few  words  to  the  large  assemblage 
gathered  there,  and  thereupon  told  them  they 
had  known  of  his  wickedness  in  the  past, 
and  called  upon  them  to  witness  his  public 
profession  of  Christ,  his  renunciation  of  the 
old  life,  and  his  purpose  to  be  as  zealous  for 
Christ  and  his  cause  as  he  had  been  for  evil. 
He  has  stood  fast  and  been  a  power  for 


good.  Ten  more  were  baptized  here  by  Bro. 
McCormick  in  March,  making  now  a  church 
of  45  members. 

A  SCENE  TO  REMEMBER 
AND  A  CALL  FOR  A  GIFT 

It  was  truly  touching  to  see  the  fervent, 
joyous  spirit  of  these  people  who  five  years 
ago  were  in  spiritual  darkness.  As  we  re¬ 
mounted  our  horses  to  wend  our  way  home¬ 
ward,  the  company,  clad  mostly  in  white, 
stood  out  in  front  of  the  house  and  sang  us 
their  Christian  songs,  until  we  disappeared 
from  sight  in  the  tropical  foliage  and  behind 
the  hills.  And  the  echoes  of  their  song  are 
ringing  in  our  hearts  yet. 

VVlLL  SOMEBODY  GIVE  $500  FOR  A  SIMPLE 
CHAPEL  FOR  THESE  SAINTS  AT  AuSUBAL? 


II.  Our  Fields  in  Central  Porto  Rico 

MISSION  STATIONS— BAPTISMS— DEDICATIONS— 

A  ROUND  OF  INTERESTING  EXPERIENCES:  : 


'^PHE  principal  towns  and  cities  where  our 
1  work  is  established  in  Central  Porto  Rico 
are  Caguas,  (Kah-wass),  Aguas  Buenas 
(Ah-was  Bu-a-nas),  Gurabo,  San  Lorenzo, 
Cidra  (Se-dra)  and  Cayey  (Kai-ay).  Leav¬ 
ing  Rio  Piedras  Saturday  afternoon,  Jan.  gth, 
in  three  hours  we  were  at  Caguas,  and  after 
changing  teams  pushed  on  to  Cidra,  where 
we  arrived  soon  after  six  o’clock.  The  car¬ 
riage  ride  over  this  military  road  to  the  junc¬ 
tion  where  we  diverged  to  Cidra  was  superb, 
as  we  wound  in  and  out  of  narrow  mountain 
ravines,  going  two  or  three  miles  to  make 
one  in  a  direct  line,  up  and  up  along  the  edge 
of  precipitous  slopes,  with  beautiful  land¬ 
scapes  far  below  and  far  away.  Cidra  it¬ 
self,  at  the  terminus  of  the  new  road,  nestles 
in  a  mountain  vale  at  an  altitude  delightfully 
cool.  One  attraction  was  the  profusion  and 
excellence  of  its  oranges — two  dozen  for 
three  cents.  We  materially  reduced  the  crop 
while  there. 

Unusual  events  called  us  to  Cidra  just  then 
—our  first  baptisms,  dedication  of  our  place 
of  worship,  and  the  first  observance  of  the 
Lord’s  Supper.  This  field  is  in  charge  of 
Rev.  E.  L.  Humphrey,  of  Cayey,  who  comes 
about  seven  miles  on  horseback  over  a  moun¬ 
tain  trail. 

FIRST  BAPTISMS  IN  CIDRA 

The  baptism  of  nineteen  converts  on  Sat¬ 
urday  evening  excited  great  interest  in  the 
community  which  had  never  seen  anything 
of  the  kind.  About  200  people  crowded  the 
house  and  stood  at  the  open  doors  and  win¬ 
dows.  Bro.  McCormick  preached ;  I  fol¬ 
lowed,  Bro.  Humphrey  interpreting;  and 
then  in  a  baptistery  back  of  the  platform  in 
a  room  at  the  rear  he  administered  the  ordi¬ 
nance,  the  congregation  being  very  respectful 
throughout  the  service.  Among  the  number 


were  some  of  the  best  people  of  the  place, 
who  are  Porto  Ricans  without  any  negro  ele¬ 
ment,  of  a  light-brown  complexion,  and  very 
neatly  dressed. 

A  MEMORABLE  SUNDAY 

Sunday  was  a  great  day  for  our  cause 
there.  Bro.  McCormick  preached  the  dedi¬ 
cation  sermon,  and  after  some  remarks  by 
myself  the  congregation,  at  the  instance  of 
one  of  their  number,  extended  a  vote  of 
thanks  to  the  American  Baptist  Home  Mis¬ 
sion  Society  for  purchasing  and  fitting  up 
this  place  of  worship.  It  is  a  large,  fine  two- 


story  building  fronting  the  plaza,  and  is  said 
to  have  cost  when  erected  about  ten  years 
ago  not  less  than  $5,000.  It  cost  the  Society 
$600,  to  which  must  be  added  nearly  $200 
for  changes  and  equipment.  It  would  have 
cost  more  but  for  the  personal  attention  given 
to  the  improvements  by  Bro.  Humpbrey,  who 
has  the  knack  of  doing  almost  anything  that 
needs  to  be  done  and  the  disposition  also  to 
do  it.  The  audience  room  is  light  and  pleas¬ 
ant  ;  and  a  pastor  when  settled  here  can  oc- 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RTCO 


I  2 


VIEWS  IN  CAGUAS,  \YIIERE  WE  SHOULD  BUILD 


Street  fronting  on  Plaza  Carmelo  Diaz  and  Family  Our  Rented  Room 


cupy  other  rooms  as  his  residence.  Only  a 
short  distance  away  is  the  unfinished  Roman 
Catholic  Church,  which  was  badly  damaged 
in  the  cyclone  a  few  years  ago.  It  was  silent 
and  unoccupied  while  we  were  there.  The 
priest  from  Cayey,  who  comes  here  occasion¬ 
ally,  had  recently  charged  a  dollar  each  for 
the  baptism  of  children,  and  said  those  who 
could  not  pay  it  should  not  have  their  chil¬ 
dren  “regenerated”  (?).  A  small  bell, 
COSTING  PERHAl’S  $100,  WOULD  BE  VERY  SER¬ 
VICEABLE  HERE. 

At  the  Sunday  School  in  the  afternoon  74 
were  present.  The  teacher  of  the  Bible  class 
is  a  man  who  nine  montlis  before  was  in 
spiritual  darkness,  having  become  disgusted 
with  Romanism  and  spiritualism.  Our  na¬ 
tive  worker,  Gabriel  de  Santiago,  was  in¬ 
strumental  in  leading  him  into  the  light. 
Procuring  a  New  Testament  he  invited  his 
rural  neighbors  to  his  house  in  the  hills  a 
mile  away  from  town,  reading  and  explain¬ 
ing  to  them  the  Scriptures ;  frequently  going 
to  their  homes  for  this  purpose,  praying  for 
and  pleading  with  them,  entirely  without 
the  promise  or  expectation  of  compensation 
from  any  source  for  his  services.  At  a 
church  prayer  meeting,  when  asked  to  take 
part,  he  excused  himself  for  the  reason  that 
he  was  too  hoarse  as  a  result  of  two  days’ 
work  of  this  sort.  This  converted  man, 
Ilennogenes  Quiles,  is  a  conspicuous  ex¬ 
ample  of  the  evangelistic  spirit  that  charac¬ 
terizes  many  Porto  Rican  converts. 

The  first  proper  observance  of  the  Lord’s 
Supper,  Sunday  night,  after  a  discourse  on 
its  significance,  was  witnessed  by  an  over- 
llowing  congregation.  After  the  hand  of  fel¬ 
lowship  had  been  given  to  those  recently 
baptized,  the  broken  bread  on  a  common 
plate  and  the  wine  in  a  common  cup  were 
passed  to  the  members,  a  new  thing  to 
people  who  had  only  received  a  wafer  from 
priestly  hands.  A  sm.\ll  communion  serv¬ 


ice  IS  MUCH  NEEDED  NOT  ONLY  FOR  THIS  BUT 
FOR  OTHER  CHURCHES.  All  ill  all,  it  .was  a 
great  day  for  our  cause  in  Cidra. 

SALUTING  THE  AMERICAN  FLAG 

The  salutation  of  the  flag  by  the  children 
of  the  public  school,  on  Monday  morning, 
was  an  interesting  sight  and  suggestive  of 
the  process  of  Americanization  that  is  going 
on  here.  Floating  over  the  building  was 
the  star-spangled  banner,  toward  which  the 
brown  and  bright  faces  and  outstretched 
hands  were  turned,  as  in  unison  they  heartily 
said :  “I  pledge  allegiance  to  my  flag  and  to 
the  nation  for  which  it  stands ;  one  nation 
indivisible,  with  liberty  and  justice  for  all.” 
Then,  after  singing  “The  Red,  White  and 
Blue,”  they  marched  into  the  school  room. 
The  leading  teacher  here,  Mr.  Segarra,  is  a 
Baptist.  A  colored  teacher  from  Nebraska, 
and  the  only  American  in  the  place,  gives 
instruction  in  English  to  the  various  classes 
who  are  quite  eager  to  acquire  a  knowledge 
of  it. 

A  PRINCIPAL  CITY  THAT  MUST 

HAVE  A  GOOD  MEETING  HOUSE 

Back  to  Caguas  we  go  for  a  service  at 
night  in  our  small  rented  house  in  the  prin¬ 
cipal  city  of  all  this  region,  with  fine  build¬ 
ings  and  a  population  of  about  6,000.  The 
room,  14  X  22,  was  packed  and  a  score  or 
two  listened  at  the  open  door  and  windows. 
After  preaching,  members  of  the  church 
arose  and  repeated  Scripture  verses,  and 
after  the  benediction,  here,  as  elsewhere, 
there  was  a  general  handshaking  with  their 
visitors.  Indeed,  common  courtesy  requires 
people  to  shake  hands  at  meeting  and  part¬ 
ing,  though  together  for  but  a  moment.  But 
these  Christian  salutations  had  warmth  and 
soul  in  them.  This  church  of  62  members 
must  soon  have  a  house  of  worship,  built  of 
the  usual  material,  brick  or  stone  and  ce- 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


THREE  OF  OUR  NATIVE  PORTO  RICAN  MISSIONARIES 


Gabriel  de  Santiago  Dionisio  Hernandez 


Carmelo  Diaz 


meat,  for  which  $4,000  will  be  needed.  This 
city,  as  will  be  seen,  is  to  be  the  base  of  op¬ 
erations  for  a  large  adjacent  region.  While 
we  were  engaged  for  an  hour,  the  next 
morning,  in  exposition  of  the  Scriptures  for 
our  native  workers,  and  particularly  when 
at  prayer,  the  crowing  of  a  lot  of  game  cocks, 
for  sale  in  a  store  directly  across  the  nar¬ 
row  street,  seriously  diverted  the  mind  from 
spiritual  things. 

NATIVE  MISSIONARIES  AND  WORKERS 

Our  forceful  and  successful  native  mission¬ 
ary  here,  Senor  Carmelo  Diaz,  who  preaches 
also  at  several  other  points,  is  48  years  of  age, 
with  a  fine  physique,  a  leader,  a  fluent  and 
engaging  speaker,  with  a  remarkable  appre¬ 
hension  of  the  great  truths  of  the  gospel.  As¬ 
sociated  with  him  in  a  minor  capacity  is 
Senor  Delfino  kluler,  formerly  prominent  on 
the  police  force,  now  with  a  sort  of  martial 
spirit  enlisted  in  the  Church  militant.  Bold 
as  a  lion  and  quick-witted,  he  confronts  the 
priests,  goes  out  on  evangelizing  tours  in  the 


country,  says  to  the  people :  “You  all  know 
me,  know  what  I  was;  you  can  see  now  what 
Christ  has  done  for  me.”  Everywhere  the 
gospel  is  his  theme. 

On  our  way  to  San  Lorenzo,  about  ten 
miles  southeasterly  from  Caguas,  we  met 
three  native  brethren,  one  a  school  teacher, 
another  a  w'orkman  on  the  highway  who  en¬ 
gages  in  evangelistic  work  at  night,  the  third 
a  timekeeper  for  the  workmen,  who  was 
reading  his  New  Testament,  and  is  active  in 
evangelistic  work.  Thus,  by  the  impelling 
pow'er  of  the  new  life  in  these  and  in  many 
others,  Christ  is  being  made  known  to  mul¬ 
titudes.  And  at  San  Lorenzo  one  of  our 
brethren,  a  shoemaker,  had  Scripture  texts 
and  other  gospel  sentiments  in  large  type 
posted  up  in  his  place  of  business,  a  very 
prominent  one  being :  “Salvacion  del  Alma 


San  Lorenzo — Main 
Street — Our  Mission 
Quarters,  Unworthy 
of  such 
a  Community 


14 


OUR  WORK  TN  RORTO  RICO 


^■IE\VS  IX  AGUAS  BUEXAS 


no  puede  ser  comprado,” — the  salvation  of  the 
soul  cannot  be  bought.  It  was  suggestive 
of  William  Carey,  the  cobbler.  In  our 
cburch  here  were  three  public-school  teachers 
and  others  of  influence  in  the  city.  A  good 
congregation  welcomed  us  at  night.  Since 
then  there  has  been  a  great  religious  awaken¬ 
ing  in  the  city. 

San  Lorenzo,  with  its  red  tile  roofs  and 
old  houses,  in  contrast  to  some  costly  mod¬ 
ern  residences,  half  encircled  by  the  Rio 
Grande  river  and  mountain  ranges  beyond, 
is  very  attractive.  Late  at  night,  after  delay 
by  an  accident  while  fording  a  river,  we  re¬ 
turned  to  Caguas. 

A  TRIP  TO  THE  HILLS 

To  Aguas  Buenas,  five  miles  westward  up 
in  the  hills,  we  went  the  next  morning,  met 
and  addressed  a  company  of  our  people 
there  in  a  rented  room  on  the  principal  busi¬ 
ness  street.  Several  quite  influential  people 
are  members  of  the  cliurch.  A  young  man 
converted  here  about  three  years  ago  proved 
his  fidelity  to  Christ  by  withstanding  the 
powerful  persuasions  and  threats  of  his 
Catholic  fiancee  and  her  influential  friends, 
to  renounce  his  new  faith  under  penalty  of 
loss  of  her  love  and  loss  of  business  position. 
Getting  a  position  elsewhere,  he  is  also  ac¬ 
tively  engaged  in  the  work  of  evangelization. 

Aguas  Buenas,  most  picturesquely  situated, 
is  likely  to  become  a  summer  resort  for  resi¬ 
dents  of  San  Juan.  Some  Americans  have 
large  tobacco  interests,  and  considerable  cof¬ 
fee  is  raised  here.  After  the  berries  are  well 
dried  by  exposure  to  the  sun,  the  process  of 
hulling  is  performed  in  a  primitive  way  by 
means  of  large  wooden  pestles  and  mortars. 

Back  to  Caguas,  thence  five  or  six  miles 
northeasterly,  we  went  to  Gurabo  for  a  meet¬ 
ing  that  night,  the  congregation  here,  as  else¬ 
where,  exceeding  the  capacity  of  our  rented 
quarters.  In  this  vicinity  are  large  sugar¬ 
cane  interests.  For  a  time,  the  outlook  for 
our  cause  here  was  quite  discouraging,  but 
suddenly  and  almost  inexplicably  just  be¬ 
fore  our  visit  there  was  a  marked  develop¬ 
ment  of  interest,  and  many  who  had  made 
profession  of  faith  in  Christ  had  presented 
themselves  for  baptism.  Late  at  night  we 
returned  to  Caguas. 

MILITARY  HEADQUARTERS 

Cayey,  about  midway  between  San  Juan 
and  Ponce,  derives  much  of  its  importance 
from  the  establishment  there  of  extensive 
military  headquarters  for  the  island — bar¬ 
racks.  hospital  and  spacious  tracts  for  field 
practice.  In  itself  it  is  a  bright  and  inter¬ 
esting  place,  while  its  mountain  environment 
is  superb.  From  the  high  summit  of  El 
Torito,  at  the  south,  reached  by  a  steep  sinu¬ 
ous  road,  the  city  looks  like  a  pearl  in  a  set¬ 
ting  of  brilliant  green  ;  northward  about  20 
miles  is  seen  San  Juan  and  the  Atlantic 
ocean ;  southwesterly  the  Caribbean  sea  and 
the  islands  near  the  port  of  Ponce,  while  east 
and  west  appears  the  broad  expanse  of  a 
thousand  verdant  hills;  the  whole  scene  most 
entrancing. 


I.  IIuIlinR  coffee.  2.  Street  on  which  our 
Mission  is.  3.  Our  poor  rented  premises. 
4.  Group  of  school  children. 


VIEWS  IN  CAYEY,  CENTRAL  DISTRICT  OF  PORTO  RICO 


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Our  Rented  Mission  House  The  Catholic  Church  View  from  the  Road  at  a  Distance 


i6 


OUR  WORIC  IN  PORTO  RICO 


After  vigorous  driving  of  four-and-a-half 
hours  we  were  heartily  welcomed  at  Cayey 
by  Rev.  E.  L.  Humphrey,  and  soon  afterward 
by  Bro.  Rudd,  from  Ponce,  who,  with  Bro. 
McCormick  and  myself,  composed  a  Baptist 
Conference  for  the  consideration  of  numer¬ 
ous  subjects  pertaining  to  the  efficient  prose¬ 
cution  of  our  work  in  Porto  Rico.  Nearly 
two  days  were  spent  here,  with  public  ser¬ 
vices  both  nights  in  our  rented  room,  which 
was  well  filled,  several  soldiers  being  pres¬ 
ent.  The  necessity  for  a  suitable  house  of 


worship  in  this  important  centre  led  to  nego¬ 
tiations,  since  consummated,  for  an  admir¬ 
able  site  on  which  a  tasteful  chapel,  costing 
about  $4,000,  should  be  erected  this  year. 
Bro.  Humphrey  has  made  rapid  progress  in 
the  use  of  Spanish,  is  held  in  high  esteem, 
thoroughly  enjoys  his  work,  including  the 
ride  through  the  mountains  to  Cidra,  preach¬ 
ing  Christ  along  the  way,  and  hopes  it  may 
be  his  privilege  to  devote  his  life  to  the  evan¬ 
gelization  of  Porto  Rico.  He  is  admirably 
adapted  for  the  work. 


in.  Our  Southern  District  in  Porto  Rico 

ON  HORSEBACK  — TH  E  BISHOP  AND  PASTORAL 
NEGLECT— THE  CROWNING  DAY  IN  PORTO  RICO 


The  nine  principal  stations  in  the  southern 
district  are  Barranquitas,  Barros,  Coamo, 
Ponce,  La  Playa,  Corral  Viejo  (Ve-a-ho), 
Adjuntas  (Ad-hiintas),  Yauco  and  Guanica 
(Gwan-ica).  Going  from  Cayey  by  carriage 
to  Aibonito,  there  Bro.  Rudd  and  myself  took 

Our  Mission 
I’rojierty  at 
Barranquitas 
This  is  a 
Makeshift, 
and  Ought 
Soon  to  be 
Replaced 
hy  a  Neat 
Chapel 

saddle  horses  for  the  seven  mile  ride  over 
the  new  highway  northward  to  Barranquitas, 
and  thence  for  about  the  same  distance  over 
a  rough  mountain  trail  to  Barros.  Two 
bright  young  men,  internal  revenue  officials 
and  very  friendly  to  our  cause,  most  hospit¬ 
ably  entertained  us  over  night,  refusing  any 
compensation.  They  had  declined  to  enter¬ 
tain  the  Romish  Bishop,  because  they  could 
not  give  him  a  sufficiently  stately  reception  ! 
The  real  reason  was ;  they  wanted  to  have 
nothing  to  do  with  him.  The  coming  of  this 
ecclesiastic  was  the  sensation  of  the  place 
and  the  country  roundabout.  For  fourteen 
years  no  bishop  had  been  here  to  confirm  the 


young  people,  some  of  whom  had  reached 
the  age  of  35  without  the  episcopal  blessing. 
This  is  but  one  instance  in  many  of  the  neg¬ 
lect  of  the  people  by  their  religious  guard¬ 
ians.  All  abroad,  through  this  thickly  set  ¬ 
tled  region  word  was  sent  of  the  Bishop’s 
coming  for  the  confirmation  of  the  people 
at  ten  cents  each !  It  was  estimated  that  he 
would  receive  from  $400  to  $500  on  this  visit. 
Rest  assured  that  both  here  and  at  Barros 
where  he  was  also  going,  in  our  discourses 


Tobacco  Culture  under  cheese  cloth,  hut  roofs 
protruding,  near  Barranciuitas.  This  shows 
about  150  acres,  and  dwelling  houses  for 
laborers 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


O 


to  the  large  congregations  we  made  eflfective 
use  of  the  incident  of  these  ecclesiastical 
money-changers  who  cared  more  for  the 
fleece  than  for  the  flock. 

THE  GOSPEL  LEAVEN  WORKING 

Barranquitas,  though  of  less  than  i,ooo 
people,  has  been  and  is  influential  in  insular 
politics,  being  the  home  of  the  Federal  leader, 
Sehor  Rivera,  who  spends  some  of  his  time 
in  New  York  City,  as  editor  of  the  Porto 
Rico  Herald  published  there.  Here  again  we 
saw  how  the  gospel  leaven  is  working  among 
the  people.  At  the  meeting  was  a  fine  look¬ 
ing  young  man  whom  we  had  passed  on  the 
highway,  who  reads  and  explains  the  Scrip¬ 
tures  to  his  fellow-workmen  whenever  he  has 
opportunity.  Services  are  held  in  a  rented 
building,  for  the  purchase  of  which  we  ne¬ 
gotiated,  though  it  may  not  be  obtained,  ow¬ 
ing  to  defect  in  title. 

METHOD  OF  TOBACCO  CULTURE 

Near  here,  we  passed  a  field  of  over  lOO 
acres  of  tobacco  growing  under  cheese-cloth, 
with  the  houses  of  workmen  projecting 
through  it,  like  jutting  rocks  out  of  a  snowy 
landscape.  Oranges  are  abundant,  but  the 
natives  never  eat  them  before  breakfast.  As 
we  despatched  some  the  first  thing  in  the 
morning,  our  host  declared  that  he  would 
not  eat  one  for  ten  dollars;  our  reply  being 
that  for  that  sum  we  would  eat  several. 

A  MORNING  RIDE  UPHILL 

A  FIELD  OF  GREAT  PROMISE 

And  now,  early  in  the  morning,  mounting 
our  horses,  away  we  go  to  Barros,  over  the 
steep  winding  mountain  trail,  in  places  al¬ 
most  like  riding  up  a  flight  of  stairs ;  ford¬ 
ing  several  streams ;  through  groves  of  the 
magnificent  royal  palm ;  crossing  the  summit 
at  an  altitude  of  about  3,000  feet ;  after  three 
hours’  continuous  riding  reaching  our  des¬ 
tination.  The  town  itself  has  about  1,000  in¬ 
habitants.  The  neighboring  district  is  densely 
populated.  It  presents  a  striking  combina¬ 
tion  of  fine  residences  in  the  centre  of  the 
town  and  rustic  cabins  on  the  steep  eastern 
hillside.  Fronting  the  plaza  is  our  rented 
house,  which  was  crowded  at  night,  while 
about  a  hundred  people  outside  attentively 
listened  to  the  speakers.  At  the  close  of  the 
discourse  a  bright  young  man,  a  teacher  in 
the  public  school,  came  to  the  front  and  pub¬ 
licly  made  known  his  purpose  to  follow 
Christ,  making  four  teachers  and  the  post¬ 
master  who  are  with  us.  Bro.  Rudd  says 
that  in  all  the  fifteen  years  of  his  missionary 
experience  he  has  never  seen  so  rich,  ripe 
and  promising  a  field  as  Barros.  The  tide 
of  sentiment  is  strongly  in  our  favor.  So 
important  is  it  to  have  a  house  of  our  own 
here  that  we  negotiated  for  a  central  lot  with 
a  building,  the  material  of  which  can  be  util¬ 
ized  in  the  erection  of  a  church  edifice,  which 
can  be  built  with  $1,000  additional.  And  the 
man  who  sold  it  is  President  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Society  of  the  place  and  was  to  en¬ 
tertain  the  Bishop  the  next  week !  Our  na- 


VIEWS  I.\  BARROS 


I.  Homes  of  the  Humble.  2.  The  Roman  Cath¬ 
olic  Church.  3.  The  Town  from  the  West. 
4.  Our  Rented  Premises. 


i8 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


Our  Rented  Quarters  The  Catholic  Church  The  Main  Street 

CHURCH  CONTRASTS  IN  COAMO 


tive  missionary  who  labors  here  and  at  Bar- 
ranquitas  is  Gabriel  de  Santiago,  a  very  capa¬ 
ble  and  estimable  young  man.  The  work  was 
begun  here  in  the  spring  of  1903,  and  when 
we  were  there  14  persons  were  awaiting  bap¬ 
tism. 


SERVICE  AT  COAMO 

After  the  return  horseback  ride  of  about 
14  miles  to  Aibonito,  and  a  two  hours’  car¬ 
riage  ride  thence,  zigzagging  down  the  steep 
mountain  sides  amid  beautiful  and  sublime 
scenery,  we  reached  Coamo  in  time  for  the 
evening  service,  in  our  rented  barn-like  room. 
Though  short  notice  was  given  of  the  meet¬ 
ing  there  were  about  80  present.  The  work 
here  has  been  difficult,  partly  because  of  the 
unattractive  place  of  worship,  partly  because 
of  the  strong  Catholic  influence,  and  for  lack 


Guanica  Bay,  where  the  American  troops  landed 
to  take  the  Island.  Our  rented  Mission  premises. 

of  a  suitable  workman.  Coamo  is  a  fine  city 
of  about  5,500,  and  demands  energetic  and 
liberal  measures  for  its  evangelization.  Here 
also  a  site  for  a  house  of  worship  was  pro¬ 
visionally  acquired. 


THE  WESTERNMOST  MISSIONS 

On  to  Ponce  the  next  afternoon ;  the  fol¬ 
lowing  morning  very  early  by  rail  an  hour 
and  a  half  to  Yauco;  thence  an  hour  by  car¬ 
riage  and  we  were  at  our  westernmost  mis¬ 
sion,  Guanica,  where  the  American  troops 
landed  in  1899  for  the  invasion  of  the  island. 
The  town  of  700  or  800  people  is  dull,  very 
little  maritime  business  being  done  here;  but 
the  broad  bay  with  its  bold  bluffs  at  the  dis¬ 
tant  ocean  entrance  is  beautiful.  Large  sugar 
cane  plantations  and  mills  are  in  this  vicinity. 
There  is  no  Roman  Catholic  church  here. 
This  is  an  outstation  of  Yauco,  services  being 
held  in  a  small  rented  huilding.  But  for  us 
the  people  would  be  absolutely  without  re¬ 
ligious  attention.  No  attempt  was  made  to 
get  a  meeting  in  the  forenoon.  Guanica  may 
yet  assume  importance  as  a  naval  station. 

A  COMMERCIAL  CENTRE 

Yauco  is  the  commercial  centre  of  this  sec¬ 
tion.  It  has  a  population  of  about  6,000 ; 
many  excellent  buildings ;  is  one  of  the 
wealthiest  cities  of  its  size  on  the  island. 
Our  missionary  here,  Eugenio  Alvarado,  was 
a  student  for  the  priesthood,  became  dis¬ 
gusted  with  the  badness  of  the  priests,  left 
them  for  a  worldly  life,  at  a  crisis  in  his 
career  was  converted,  and  is  not  only  an 
effective  preacher  but  very  studious,  as  evi¬ 
denced  in  some  of  the  examination  papers  of 
the  correspondence  school  work  inaugurated 
by  Bro.  Rudd.  Here  we  have  a  church  of 
62  members,  meeting  in  a  very  good  rented 
building  with  a  seating  capacity  of  about  125. 
The  room  was  packed,  and  a  large  number 
unable  to  get  in  stood  at*the  door  and  win¬ 
dows,  listening  most  intently  to  our  utter¬ 
ances.  Here  a  house  should  soon  be  built. 
An  excellent  site  was  negotiated  for  while 
we  were  there  and  has  since  been  purchased 
by  the  Society. 

MRS.  Duggan’s  school 

The  visit  to  Mrs.  Duggan’s  mission  in  a 
suburb  of  Ponce,  the  next  day,  was  of  much 
interest.  With  a  folding  organ  in  her  buggy, 
after  fording  a  stream,  we  reached  the 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


“chapel,”  which  was  an  arbor  covered  with 
palm  leaves,  open  at  the  sides,  and  contain¬ 
ing  some  cheap  benches  for  the  children  and 
a  few  older  people  who  gather  there.  Though 
the  Roman  Catholics  had  recently  resorted 
to  their  peculiar  methods  to  break  up  the 
mission,  25  were  present ;  and  as  we  heard 
their  hearty  singing  of  Sunday  School  hymns 
and  beheld  their  interest  in  what  was  said, 
and  thought  not  only  of  the  spiritual  benefit 

VIEWS  IX  YAUCO 


to  their  own  lives  but  also  of  the  gospel 
truths  they  conveyed  to  their  homes  and  ac¬ 
quaintances,  we  felt  that  this  humble  mis¬ 
sion,  conducted  by  a  most  devoted  and  suc¬ 
cessful  Christian  woman,  might  be  the  sim¬ 
ple  seed  sowing  of  an  abundant  harvest. 
Mrs.  Duggan,  who  labored  for  years  in  Mex¬ 
ico  and  is  the  author  of  the  popular  book  “A 
Mexican  Ranch,”  may,  it  is  hoped,  write  an¬ 
other  on  Porto  Rico.  She  is  supported  by 

I.  The  Catholic  Church 


2.  A  Principal  Street  _  3.  Our  Rented  Premises  on  the  Right 

4.  Our  Native  Missionaries,  Eugenio  Alvarado  and  Wife 


20 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


the  Woman's  American  Baptist  Home  Mis¬ 
sion  Society  of  Boston,  which  had  recently 
sent  as  her  associate  Miss  Greenlaw.  Mrs. 
Duggan  also  has  a  class  weekly  of  women  at 
the  church,  besides  doing  much  else  in  the 
interests  of  the  work  at  Ponce  and  vicinity. 

POINTS  OF  VANTAGE 

At  La  Playa,  the  busy  port  of  Ponce  and 
two  and  a  half  miles  distant,  the  meeting  at 
night  in  the  room  of  a  residence  fitted  up  for 
services  was  well  attended.  The  chapel, 
which  will  probably  be  completed  in  May  at 
a  cost  of  about  $1,700,  will  contribute  greatly 
to  the  strengthening  of  our  cause  here.  It 
occupies  a  conspicuous  location  where  it  will 
be  seen  and  known  by  the  numerous  passers- 

From  the  sea-shore,  north,  21  miles  up  into 
the  mountains  to  Adjuntas,  was  the  next 
day’s  program.  Grand  and  glorious  is  this 


Street  in  Adjuntas,  and  Our  Mission  Property 


trip  over  the  macadamized  road,  built  since 
American  occupation  and  crossing  the  island 
to  Arecibo.  Sharp  curves  in  mountain  ra¬ 
vines  and  at  jutting  points  of  the  road,  with 
massive  retaining  walls  below  and  towering 
rocks  above,  and  magnificent  landscapes 
stretching  away  to  the  ocean,  are  some  of 
the  attractions  of  this  remarkably  interesting 
route.  Adjuntas  itself  will  undoubtedly,  with 
returning  prosperity  to  the  island,  again  be¬ 
come  a  great  summer  resort  because  of  its 
salubrity,  and  its  coolness  which  at  night  was 
quite  enough  for  our  comfort. 

Here  the  Society  has  acquired  a  very  de¬ 
sirable  property,  a  good  corner  lot  fronting 
the  plaza,  on  which  is  a  large  building  afford¬ 
ing  accommodations,  though  inferior,  for  our 
services,  and  a  residence  for  the  missionary. 
After  the  evening  service,  which  was  well 
attended,  Bro.  Rudd  baptized  three  persons, 
making  the  number  of  members  in  the  church 
54.  About  $1,000  is  needed  for  the  recon¬ 
struction  and  proper  equipment  of  a  part  of 


the  building  for  a  chapel.  The  native  mis¬ 
sionary,  Dionisio  Hernandez,  was  a  zealous 
Romanist  who  violently  broke  up  some  evan- 


Corral  Viejo 
Chapel. 
Dedicated 
January,  1904 
What  Can 
Be  Done 
for  $800 
including 
Furniture 


gelical  services  in  the  beginning  of  our  work, 
but  at  length,  like  persecuting  Saul,  was  con¬ 
verted  through  and  through.  He  preaches 
also  at  two  or  three  outstations.  The  recep¬ 
tion  of  members  was  conducted  most  satis¬ 
factorily;  and  after  the  usual  baptismal 
formula,  as  well  as  after  the  benediction,  the 
church  members  responded  in  unison  with 
the  minister:  “Amen.”  And  here,  again,  is 
a  native  Bible  class  teacher  whose  wife  was 
baptized  the  night  we  were  there,  who  since 
his  conversion  has  got  a  surprising  knowl¬ 
edge  of  Scripture  truth.  With  the  develop¬ 
ment  of  such  material  in  our  churches  we 
may  expect  substantial  growth  by  their  own 
inherent  vitality. 

A  GREAT  SUNDAY 

The  crowning  day  of  all  in  Porto  Rico  was 
Sunday,  Jan.  24th.  Corral  Viejo,  where  Bro. 
Rudd  has  found  it  necessary  to  live  on  ac¬ 
count  of  the  health  of  his  family,  is  about  six 
miles  north  of  Ponce  on  the  road  to  Ad¬ 
juntas,  at  a  considerable  elevation,  and  lying 
between  towering  hills.  Thence  early  we 
went  to  the  Sunday  School  in  our  church  at 
Ponce,  where  we  have  a  beautiful  and  com¬ 
modious  house  in  this  city  of  many  fine 
buildings  and  a  population  of  28,000.  The 
site,  house  and  furnishings  cost  in  round 
numbers  $13,000.  The  location  is  excellent. 
Here  were  nearly  200  persons  studying  the 

On  the  Road  to  Adjuntas 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


2  I 


Panoramic  View  of  Ponce,  Second  City  in  Importance 


word  of  God ;  Bro.  Rudd  having  a  fine  class 
of  young  men ;  Mrs.  Duggan  a  primary  class 
of  83  packed  in  the  small  rear  rooms;  a 
men’s  Bible  class  numbering  25 ;  a  woman’s 
Bible  class  of  40  taught  by  a  native  woman 


Our  Model  Baptist  Church  in  Ponce.  Such  houses 
command  respect  and  give  us  ])roper  standing 
and  equipment 


of  much  ability;  and  several  other  classes  of 
youth  of  both  sexes.  The  singing  was  good. 
Of  course  the  visitor  had  to  address  the 
school. 

The  dedication  of  the  new  chapel  at  Corral 
Viejo  followed  in  the  afternoon.  It  is  a  plain 
structure,  neatly  painted,  comfortably  seated, 
well  located  in  the  midst  of  this  thickly  set¬ 


tled  hamlet,  which  is  becoming  a  favorite 
suburb  for  residents  of  Ponce.  The  entire 
property,  including  furniture,  cost  less  than 
$800 ;  Bro.  Rudd  giving  much  personal  at¬ 
tention  to  the  enterprise.  The  house,  seating 
about  150,  was  crowded  and  many  stood  at 
the  doors.  The  Secretary  of  the  Society  dis¬ 
coursed  on  the  purposes  for  which  the  house 
was  erected ;  Alvarado  followed  in  an  ex¬ 
cellent  discourse  on  the  spiritual  temple. 
llo-cv  much  the  erection  of  this  house  means 
to  the  community  may  be  inferred  from  the 
fact  that  until  zve  began  to  hold  services,  no 
priest  had  been  here  for  eight  years,  unless 
on  some  special  occasion.  Suddenly,  they  be¬ 
came  concerned  and  tried  various  expedients 
to  turn  the  current  that  was  running  in  our 
favor.  The  very  afternoon  of  our  dedication, 
according  to  previous  announcement,  tzoo 
priests  came  from  Ponce  to  hold  services  in 
the  house  of  a  leading  family  of  the  place, 
hoping  thereby  to  draw  the  people  away  from 
us.  They  had  a  small  congregation  compared 
with  ours,  and  got  scant  comfort  as  on  their 
return  they  rode  by  our  thronged  house. 
This  is  a  fair  illustration  of  the  independence 
of  Porto  Ricans  in  religious  matters.  Our 
chapel,  which  is  the  only  one  of  any  kind  be¬ 
tween  Ponce  and  Adjuntas,  is  said  to  be  the 
first  country  house  of  worship  erected  any¬ 
where  on  the  island.  We  ought  to  build  a 
score  for  rural  communities  remote  from  the 
principal  cities.  Hardly  anywhere  could  a 
few  hundred  dollars  be  more  wisely  invested. 

Back  to  Ponce  we  went  for  the  evening 
service,  addressing  there  a  most  attentive 
congregation  of  about  250  people.  This 
church  is  being  trained  in  the  system  of 
weekly  offerings  and  in  the  proper  manage¬ 
ment  of  its  affairs.  It  maintains  in  part  three 
mission  schools,  in  the  eastern  and  northern 
parts  of  the  city.  The  church  needs  the 


22 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


services  of  a  native  assistant,  inasmuch  as  it 
is  simply  impossible  for  Bro.  Rudd  to  give 
it  requisite  attention,  with  the  manifold  du¬ 
ties  and  heavy  responsibilities  of  supervision 
of  the  other  interests  in  this  southern  por¬ 
tion  of  the  island.  At  Corral  Viejo,  particu¬ 
larly,  the  interest  and  efficiency  of  the  Sun¬ 
day  School  and  of  the  prayer  meetings  is  due 
largely  to  Mrs.  Rudd,  whose  soul  goes  out 
in  Christian  sympathy  and  helpfulness  to 
these  people  groping  out  of  darkness  into  day. 
In  addition  to  his  other  labors  Bro.  Rudd  has 
begun  a  successful  correspondence  school  in 
Bible  study  for  the  native  preachers. 

FAREWELL  SCENES 

The  final  service  the  following  night  at 
Corral  Viejo  was  attended  by  a  large  congre¬ 
gation.  Two  native  brethren,  Alvarado  and 
Mier,  preached  strong  and  stirring  sermons, 
after  which  came  a  few  parting  words  by  the 
Society’s  representative.  Elpidio  de  Mier. 
educated  for  the  priesthood,  is  a  talented 
man,  intense  and  rapid  in  delivery,  quick  in 
every  movement  and  full  of  zeal.  It  is  hoped 
that  he  may  become  a  power  in  the  evangeli¬ 
zation  of  Porto  Rico.  For  the  time  he  is  sta¬ 
tioned  at  La  Playa. 

Reluctantly,  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  Jan¬ 
uary,  we  left  La  Playa  for  Santiago,  Cuba, 
with  pleasant  memories  of  association  with 
the  choice  spirits  who  direct  our  work,  and 


of  the  score  of  congregations  aggregating 
about  2,000,  whom  it  was  our  privilege  to 
meet  and  address  on  great  gospel  themes. 
Brethren  Rudd  and  Mier  accompanied  us  in 
a  row  boat  to  the  steamer  at  anchor  a  mile 
or  more  away,  the  harbor  near  the  shore  be¬ 
ing  too  shallow  for  large  vessels.  Inde¬ 
scribably  beautiful  was  the  scene  before  us 
from  the  steamer’s  deck ;  the  blue  waters  of 
the  bay,  the  white  surf  of  the  reefs,  the  pink, 
blue  and  orange  colored  buildings  of  the  city, 
our  ever  beautiful  banner,  tbe  deep  green 
fringes  of  royal  palm  and  cocoanut  groves  in 
the  foreground ;  beyond,  the  lighter  green 
with  darker  patches  of  the  hills,  their  thread¬ 
like  trails  and  frequent  cabins  ;  some  valleys  in 
gloom,  others  in  the  white  of  sunlit  showers; 
distant  peaks  here  and  there  in  clear  cut  out¬ 
line  against  patches  of  deep  blue  sky,  others 
in  heavy  shadows  with  silvery  clouds  in  the 
background ;  all  constituting  an  enchanting 
scene  that  gradually  faded  from  view  as  the 
sun  went  down,  leaving  us  at  the  southwest- 
ernmost  point  of  the  island  to  see  at  last  the 
brilliant  rays  of  a  lighthouse  on  a  bold  head¬ 
land,  and  away  back  above  the  mountain 
peaks  a  glowing  pillar  of  cloud — the  one 
seeming  a  symbol  of  our  gospel  lighthouses 
in  the  spiritual  darkness ;  the  other,  sug¬ 
gestive  of  the  shining  cloud  of  old  that  at¬ 
tested  the  Divine  presence  among  his  chosen 
people. 


Street  in  Ponce,  Fronting  Plaza.  Carnival  Procession. 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


23 


Special  Notes  on  Porto  Rico 


A  PARTIAL  SUMMING  UP  OF  THE  NAR¬ 
RATIVE— THE  THINGS  THAT  SHOULD 
INTEREST  AMERICAN  GIVERS  :  : 


Rev.  H.  P.  McCORMICK  and  wife  and 
Miss  Ida  Hayes,  of  San  Juan,  and  Rev. 
A.  B.  Rudd  and  wife  and  Mrs.  Janie  P.  Dug¬ 
gan,  of  Ponce,  were  for  several  years  effi¬ 
cient  missionaries  in  Mexico  under  the  aus¬ 
pices  of  the  Foreign  Mission  Board  of  the 
Southern  Baptist  Convention.  For  good 
reasons  they  left  its  service  and  returned  to 
the  States  shortly  before  the  conclusion  of 
our  war  with  Spain.  They  heartily  re¬ 
sponded  to  our  quick  call  for  workers  in 
Porto  Rico.  This  providential  and  most 
timely  gift  of  able  and  experienced  workers 
who  spoke  Spanish  fluently  accounts  in  large 
measure  for  the  success  of  our  missions  in 
Porto  Rico. 

Rev.  E.  L.  Humphrey,  of  Cayey,  had  a 
varied  experience  in  Christian  work  which 
seems  to  have  been  a  preparation  for  his 
present  service.  The  recent  appointments  of 
Rev.  L.  E.  Troyer  and  Mr.  H.  W.  Vodra,  of 
the  graduating  class  of  the  Rochester  Theo¬ 
logical  Seminary,  one  for  Northern  and  the 
other  for  Southern  Porto  Rico,  constitute 
valuable  and  needed  reinforcements  for  our 
v/ork  there.  Only  one  more  American  mis¬ 
sionary  will  be  needed  for  some  time  to  come. 
The  six  native  workers  will  doubtless  be  in¬ 
creased  to  eight  or  nine  soon.  Indeed  it  is 
surprising  how  much  good  native  talent  the 
Lord  has  already  raised  up  for  this  field 
white  unto  the  harvest. 

CONCERNING  ORGANS 

Cabinet  organs  are  needed  for  church  and 
Sunday  School  services.  There  are  but  five 
or  six  for  all  our  21  principal  stations. 
Some  of  the  missionaries  “tote”  baby-organs 
on  horseback  or  in  wagon  from  point  to 
point.  We  should  have  ten  more  organs 
speedily;  half  of  the  number  costing  each 
with  freight  about  $125 ;  the  others,  portable 
organs,  costing  each  with  freight  about  $40. 
This  instrumental  music  adds  much  to  the 
attractiveness  and  effectiveness  of  our  ser¬ 
vices. 

CONCERNING  GOSPEL  HORSES 

Gospel  wagons  can  do  a  very  limited  work 
in  Porto  Rico,  or  in  Cuba,  because  the  roads 
on  which  they  can  be  used  are  few.  Gospel 
horses,  without  wagons  are  necessary  to 
traverse  the  hilly  interior  where  the  people 
can  be  reached  only  by  this  method  or  on 
foot.  With  a  horse,  many  a  missionary  can 
double  his  efficiency,  and  often  effect  a  de¬ 
cided  saving  in  travelling  expenses.  Porto 
Rican  horses  cost  on  an  average  from  $40  to 
$50,  including  outfit,  and  the  annual  expense 
of  about  $60  for  keeping.  The  Society  has 
eight  horses  in  service  in  Porto  Rico  and 
ought  to  have  five  more  at  once,  for  its  20 


stations  and  30  outstations.  Who  will  have 
a  horse  at  work  for  him  in  Porto  Rico? 

CONCERNING  “eL  EVANGELISTA” 

The  new  Baptist  paper  for  Porto  Rico, 
“El  Evangelista,”  Rev.  H.  P.  McCormick, 
editor,  made  its  first  appearance  in  March, 
1904.  It  was  found  impracticable  to  have  one 
Baptist  paper  for  Porto  Rico,  Cuba  and  Mex¬ 
ico,  or,  indeed,  one  for  the  two  islands,  in- 


EL  EHNGELISTA. 


"  vO  HE  SIDO  PUESTO  PARA  LA  DEPENSA  DEL  EVANGELIC.  t:€. 


asniLich  as  now  steamers  ply  only  monthly 
between  Ponce  and  Santiago.  Therefore  our 
brethren  in  each  island  were  pronounced  in 
favor  of  a  paper  of  their  own.  It  is  needed 
to  keep  our  people  informed  of  the  progress 
of  our  cause  there  and  elsewhere  and  to  set 
forth  the  great  truths  of  the  Gospel  in  a 
fresh  and  forcible  way,  as  well  as  to  refute 
the  objections  and  misstatements  of  the  Rom¬ 
anists  and  others.  In  response  to  the  re¬ 
quest  of  the  Home  Mission  Society  the  Amer¬ 
ican  Baptist  Publication  Society  appropria¬ 
ted  $300  for  this  purpose  which  is  divided 
between  the  two  papers.  An  addition  of  $200, 
with  the  small  receipts  from  subscriptions, 
will  probably  cover  expenses  of  monthly  pub- 


24 


OUR  WORK  IN  PORTO  RICO 


lications ;  of  course  the  work  of  editing  and 
managing  these  papers  is  entirely  without 
compensation. 


CONCERNING  BELLS 

Every  one  of  our  chapels  should  have  a 
bell  to  remind  the  people  of  our  presence 
and  of  the  hours  for  services.  They  have 
not  our  fixed  habits  about  going  to  church. 
Many  have  no  timepieces  in  their  homes.  Six 
bells  are  needed  now — one  costing  $350  for 
the  house  at  Ponce ;  others  costing,  includ¬ 
ing  freight,  from  $75  to  $100  each.  Special 
rates  are  offered  us  by  one  of  the  best  con¬ 
cerns  in  the  country.  Who  wants  to  set  the 
Gospel  bells  a-ringing  in  Porto  Rico? 

CONCERNING  “sPIRITISm” 

“Spiritism”  is  very  prevalent  both,  in 
Porto  Rico  and  Cuba.  It  is  spiritualism  and 
more.  It  has  its  mediums,  its  table  tip¬ 
ping,  knockings,  etc.,  and  has  arrayed  itself 
to  a  considerable  extent  in  a  Christian  garb. 
There  are  numerous  organizations  for  the 
propagation  of  the  faith.  They  teach  the 
repeated  reincarnations  of  human  spirits  un¬ 
til  at  length  perfection  shall  be  attained. 
Allan  Kardec  (which,  however,  is  a  pseudo¬ 
nym),  of  France,  is  the  great  apostle  of 
spiritism,  his  works  being  extensively  cir¬ 
culated  throughout  these  Spanish-speaking 
countries.  It  is  avowedly  antagonistic  to 
Romanism.  It  calls  its  own  system  the 
“Religio  Ideal,”  and  that  of  Rome  the  “Re- 
ligio  Positiva”;  the  former  being  the  ideal 
or  spiritual  religion  in  contrast  to  the  Rom¬ 
ish  religion  of  dogma  and  rites  and  cere¬ 
monies.  It  is  estimated  that  a  third  of  the 
population  are  adherents  of  this  system.. 
At  first,  they  thought  that  we,  who  placed 
so  much  stress  upon  spiritualitv  and  the  in¬ 
sufficiency  of  ceremonies  as  means  of  salva- 


Easy 
way  to 
get  a 
meal 
if  one 
is  good 
at  the 
climb¬ 
ing. 

One  of 
our  mis¬ 
sionaries 
and  a 
group  of 
natives 
watch 
the  opera' 
tion 

with  glee 


Native  climbing  a  tree  for  cocoanuts, 
near  Mediania — Snap-shotted  in 
the  act.  Missionary  McCormick 
on  the  right  of  group 

tion,  were  essentially  like  themselves  and 
were  ready  to  join  our  churches.  They  soon 
found,  however,  the  radical  differences  be¬ 
tween  us  and  fell  away,  though  some  have 
come  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth.  In  gen¬ 
eral  their  attitude  towards  us  is  very 
friendly,  regarding  us  as  an  ally  in  their  op¬ 
position  to  Romanism. 


A  Private  Modern  High  Class  Residence  in  Ponce 


DATE  DUE 


1 

1 

!  ■  '  ’ 

USt  FOK  UNF  MC 

Nia 

JUL  2 5  7 

1 

JUL  2  3  7- 

[ 

OCT  3  1 

1191 

1 

: 

GAYLORD 

PRINTED  IN  U.S  A. 

The  First  Response — Who  Will  Make  the  Next? 


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